A quiet week ahead of the Christmas break

Date: December 22, 2025

• Gordon Tang to buy out Suntec REIT’s manager for S$190m
• Keppel sold remaining interests in two data centres for S$50.5m to Keppel DC REIT
• EC World REIT given until May 2026 to submit resumption proposal
• JP Morgan bullish on Singapore stocks, names seven top picks
• SIAS called on Singapore Paincare to clarify actions after failed privatisation bid
• Economists raised 2026 growth estimate to 2.3%: MAS survey

 

The STI fell 17 points or 0.4% to 4,569.78 in quiet trading

As the Christmas and New Year holiday week draws nearer, activity in the local stock market quite understandably will show signs of slowing down.

This was certainly the case last week when the Straits Times Index drifted down 17 points or 0.4% to 4,569.78 in low volume – at least until Friday when S$2.05b was traded, mainly thanks to activity in the banks and Singtel. Between Monday and Thursday, daily turnover ranged between S$1.06b to S$1.38b.

Gordon Tang to buy out Suntec REIT’s manager for S$190m

Acrophyte Asset Management, controlled by property tycoon Gordon Tang,

will buy from ESR Asset Management all the shares in the Suntec REIT manager for S$190 million, “plus the manager’s assets less the liabilities as at Dec 31, 2025”.

It said in a statement that Tang currently owns, directly and through his affiliates, a 35.7% stake, or about one billion units, in Suntec REIT while ESR owns 10.8%.

“We have consistently shown our confidence in Suntec Reit, via our significant long-term unitholding,” said Tang, a China-born billionaire. “Acquiring the manager is an extension of our commitment to Suntec Reit.”

Chong Kee Hiong, the manager’s chief executive officer, said his team remains focused on “disciplined execution to deliver long-term value for unitholders”. He noted: “After the handover, we will work closely with Mr Tang to deliver sustainable growth through pro-active capital and portfolio management.”

The deal – announced in Singapore Exchange filings on Tuesday – is subject to approval by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Keppel sold remaining interests in two data centres for S$50.5m to Keppel DC REIT

Asset manager Keppel announced that its connectivity division has agreed to sell its stakes in two data centres S$50.5 million in cash to Keppel DC Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT).

The remaining stakes held by Keppel are the 10% interest in data centre Keppel DC Singapore 3, and 1% interest in another data centre, Keppel DC Singapore 4.

The transactions are expected to occur by the first quarter of 2026.

These deals are part of Keppel’s asset monetisation programme, which will bring the group’s announced monetisation in the year to date to over S$2.4 billion.

The acquisitions will be funded by the REIT’s preferential offering and issuance of units. Following the completion of the deal, the aggregate leverage of the REIT is expected to improve from 29.8 to 29.5%, with debt headroom of around S$944 million.

The REIT’s assets under management (AUM) are set to rise by around 3.5%, from S$5.7 billion to S$5.9 billion after this move, with the share of Singapore assets increasing from 57.8 to 58.8% of AUM.

EC World REIT given until May 2026 to submit resumption proposal

EC World Real Estate Investment Trust’s (ECW) application for more time to submit a resumption proposal was approved by the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading (SGX-ST), the REIT manager.

The waiver, valid until May 31, 2026, was granted on several conditions. This includes announcing the granting of the waiver, the reasons for seeking the waiver, as well as SGX-ST’s considerations.

ECW and its manager are also required to submit a written confirmation that they are not aware of any information that will have a material bearing on investors’ decisions. “SGX-ST had considered that ECW required more time to work on its proposals to meet its loan repayment obligations,” the REIT manager noted.

These proposals cover four aspects, one of them the progress on ECW’s appeal against the judgments on the invalidity and revocation of the relevant mortgages over Fuzhou E-Commerce. The asset was one of the three properties owned by ECW that were mortgaged without its knowledge or consent in November 2023.

The second aspect is the potential global settlement arrangement for the repayment of outstanding receivables. Third, the potential internalisation of the REIT management function of ECW. Lastly, the potential divestment of one or more of the Stage 1 Properties of Bei Gang Logistics and Chongxian Port Logistics.

The manager said that it believes it is in the interest of unitholders to resolve these issues before trading in its units resumes. This would “reduce the risk of ECW facing enforcement action from its lenders and other operational difficulties moving forward”. ECW’s units have been suspended from trading on SGX since Aug 31, 2023.

JP Morgan bullish on Singapore stocks, names seven top picks

JPMorgan said in its Regional Outlook that 2026 will feature an upside for Singapore equities as global funds remain under-positioned and a much-larger-than-average cash pile of S$70 billion begins rotating from deposits into the stock market.

This trend is expected to persist until the end of the year, on the back of the Monetary Authority of Singapore holding rates steady while global yields decline.

The bank also noted that Singapore equity valuations remained attractive, with the yield gap against T-bills tracking well above historical averages.

It deemed the economic outlook “broadly resilient” due to a regional tech recovery, and noted that banks have been capitalising on a 9.3 per cent surge in deposits to bolster their net income margins and wealth management growth.

The bank advised investors to pivot away from crowded global technology and artificial intelligence (AI) trades to Asean for diversification.

Specifically, it favours markets with clear, supportive government policies, such as Singapore and Vietnam, over those facing structural headwinds, like Thailand.

Its top Singapore picks are DBS, Keppel, City Developments, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust, ST Engineering, Sea and Singtel. Its least preferred stocks are UOB and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding.

SIAS called on Singapore Paincare to clarify actions after failed privatisation bid

The Securities Investors Association (Singapore), or SIAS, called on medical services company Singapore Paincare to clarify its actions after its privatisation bid failed earlier this month.

The move is in light of the impact the collapsed deal has on minority shareholders and SIAS called on the board of directors of Singapore Paincare to provide greater clarity and transparency.

SIAS referred to the lack of “available assets, funds or collateral” from the offeror, Advance Bridge Healthcare, to support a fresh financial resources confirmation.

The company in May offered to take Catalist-listed Singapore Paincare private at S$0.16 per share – a premium of 27% over its last traded price then, but below its 2020 initial public offering price of S$0.22 per share.

The deal drew unwanted attention in August this year, when SIAS flagged potential breaches of the Code on Take-overs and Mergers, after Singapore Paincare shareholders received WhatsApp messages signed by its CEO Dr Bernard Lee and chief operating officer Dr Jeffrey Loh before a privatisaton vote.

The pact collapsed on Dec 5 as credit facilities between Advance Bridge Healthcare – a management consultancy for healthcare services – and UOB lapsed after Nov 27.

SIAS  asked for “concrete steps” taken since Aug 27, as well as details on whether the offeror made “reasonable effort” and explored “all viable options” to reconvene the adjourned meeting and/or try to extend the expiry of the scheme to allow shareholders to vote on it.

SIAS also questioned if the Singapore Paincare board was aware that the credit facilities agreement was going to lapse after Nov 27, given that Advance Bridge Healthcare in May had said that it had sufficient financial resources.

Economists raised 2026 growth estimate to 2.3%: MAS survey

Private-sector economists have turned more optimistic about Singapore’s 2026 growth, with a median expectation of 2.3% in the latest quarterly survey released by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

This is up from their 1.9% forecast in a September survey, and in the upper half of the 1-3% forecast rasnge issued by the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) in November.

The increased optimism, said OCBC chief economist Selena Ling, is driven by the “strong performance” of non-oil domestic exports and manufacturing extending into late 2025, and may persist into early 2026.

US tariffs have also proven less devastating than feared, she added. Markets are now “more comfortable” that Singapore has engines of growth beyond manufacturing, including financial and professional services as well as public infrastructure-led construction.

As 2025 draws to a close, full-year forecasts for gross domestic product growth have narrowed and risen.

The latest median expectation is 4.1%, a sharp upgrade from 2.4% in the previous survey, driven by manufacturing but with “upgrades seen across all major sectors”.